Close Call
by Artz001
Summary: Nobody really knows how much they have hurt Brainy over the years. When one of Jokey's surprises ends in disaster, It pushes him to the edge. What will become of the smart-smurf? Can Hefty, Gutsy, and Grouchy save him before anything bad happens?
1. Chapter 1

The village was awake and lively that morning. There wasn't a single smurf who wasn't enjoying the day outdoors. Well, almost every smurf was.

Brainy was sitting in his house, scribbling randomly on a piece of paper. Nobody had known this from the smart smurf, but he was in serious trouble. Not with Papa, and, for once, not with the other smurfs. This time, he was in trouble with himself. After his constant torments from the smurfs, and his daily "thrown out of the village" routine, he had become sick of even looking at himself in the mirror. It was a month ago that Brainy began to see himself slowly becoming mentally ill. His appetite was affected heavily, now barely eating at all and he didn't as often smurf his "advice" for every situation. And, from what he could tell, every smurf saw this as an improvement on the smaller annoying smurf.

A knock sounded on the door, causing Brainy to snap away from his subconscious scribbling. He sighed as he hauled himself to his feet.

"I'm coming!" he replied annoyed. He finally opened to door to find Papa standing there, a grin on his beard-covered face.

"Good afternoon Brainy!" Papa said cheerfully.

"Hi Papa," Brainy plastered a fake smile on his face. "What smurfs you here?"

"Well, I noticed that you have been inside on such a wonderful day," Papa's grin grew slightly smaller. "What have you been doing in here all day?"

Brainy tried to keep his attention on Papa, and not the random scribbles on his desk. "I was-uh-writing more of my quotations!"

Papa noticed the hesitant voice the brainiac used. "Why don't you go play by the river with the other smurfs. I'm sure they'd like to smurf a few rounds of smurf-ball with you."

Brainy's heart sank. Though he knew he could never say no to Papa. "Yes Papa smurf."

Papa's grin returned as Brainy stepped out of his house and locked the door behind him. _"Spending the day with the smurfs who hate me so,"_ Brainy thought as he walked alongside Papa. _"If only Papa could see how miserable I really am. But if I told him, he would just scold me and send me away, just like all the other smurfs."_

It wasn't long before they reached the river, where all the other smurfs were playing and splashing in the water. Smurfette was sunbathing on the shore next to Hefty, who was doing pushups. Lazy was napping under a tree while Baby and the smurflings were making a sandcastle. Brainy forced a grin and took a seat on the shore himself. Just as he had hoped for, none of the smurfs seemed to notice him sitting all by himself.

"Hiya Brainy!" or so he thought. Brainy turned to see Grouchy, Gutsy, and Hefty standing over him.

"Hello," Brainy replied annoyed to the strong smurf's comment.

"You seem quiet today, not like you laddie," Gutsy nudged Brainy, as if to flick a switch to turn Brainy back to his normal self.

"Just tired," Brainy replied truthfully.

"I hate tired," Grouchy replied. "Though it is nice to have some quiet."

The words stabbed Brainy in the chest. His assumption was true. They really did like the new Brainy.

"Wanna go for a swim in the river?" Hefty asked.

Brainy sighed. "No thanks. I'm just going to smurf here for a while."

Gutsy stared at the smaller smurf as Grouchy shrugged. "Suit yourself."

As Grouchy and Hefty left, Gutsy lingered behind. "What's smurfin' you lad? I've never seen you like this."

Brainy didn't look up from his feet. _"Someone notices me this way?" _"What do you mean Gutsy?"

"Yer normally yackin' off our ears about how we do things the wrong way," Gutsy took a seat next to the brainiac, who cringed slightly. "I know that's not like you. So, somethin' must be smurfin' ya. Care to explain?"

Brainy blinked away the tears that were threatening to fall. As he looked up, he saw Jokey running toward him.

"Hey Brainy!" his scratchy voice pierced the ears. "Papa smurf told me to get this for you! It's one of your books. He thought you might like to read for a while."

Puzzled, Brainy took the purple book. It was a copy of his quotations, the first one he had ever smurfed. Gutsy grinned and stood up. "That'll cheer you up laddie. Read for a while, and if you feel like smurfin' in the river, just let me, Hefty, and Grouchy know. Okay?"

Brainy grinned a genuine grin before nodding. Jokey grinned, returning to making more of his surprise boxes. Brainy sighed and opened up his book to the first page and began to read.

Meanwhile, Hefty and Grouchy were wrestling in the water when Gutsy finally joined them.

"What smurfed you so long?" Hefty asked as he swam closer.

"Had a chat with Brainy," Gutsy replied. "He's not actin' right, is he?"

The three glanced back at the reading smurf. "Come to think of it, he really isn't," Grouchy replied. "I haven't really heard him speak much today."

"Yea, I've noticed that too," Hefty said scratching his chin. "Do you think we should tell Papa?"

"Maybe it would be best," Gutsy sighed. "Brainy has a look in his eyes, and I don't like it."

"What type of look?" Grouchy hauled himself onto the riverbank.

"Serious depression," Gutsy replied. "I don't know what's got him so smurfed up, but it's not good, whatever it may be."

"Let's go see Papa," Hefty replied as they climbed out. "If anyone can figure it out, Papa can."

The bold smurf lead the way, with Grouchy and Hefty following behind him. Papa was sitting on the beach, playing with the smurflings and Baby.

"Sandy seashells Pappy! This is going to be the best sandcastle ever!"

Papa chuckled. "It sure will be Sassette!"

Baby noticed the three athletic smurfs coming up to him and began to gurgle happily. This caught Papa's attention as he smiled when they came close.

"Grouchy! Hefty! Gutsy!" he exclaimed happily as they approached. "Care to smurf us a hand with this sand castle?"

"Actually Papa," Hefty said. "Do you mind if we talk to you alone for a moment?"

Confused, the elder smurf handed Baby to Nat and rose from his feet. "Um... Yes of course."

They ducked behind the huge tree growing by the side of the river. "What seems to be the trouble?"

"It's Brainy," Hefty said. "He's been really quiet all day. And we all know that's not how Brainy usually is."

"Hmmm..." Papa scratched his beard. "I've noticed this too. He didn't even come outside voluntarily. I had to go smurf him myself."

"But Brainy loves being in nature," Grouch said rubbing the back of his neck.

"I know."

"Papa, somethin' is seriously wrong with him," Gutsy spoke up. " I can see it in his eyes."

Papa glanced over toward the brainiac smurf an chuckled at the sight of him reading. "He seems happy with that book."

The three turned to see a grin on Brainy's face as he read. "I guess you knew how to cheer him up," Gutsy commented.

Papa glanced back at the three smurfs. "What do you mean?"

Gutsy casted papa a skeptical glance. "You told Jokey to go get one of his books for him to read."

Papa scratched his head. "But, I haven't spoken to Jokey today. There is no way I could've known Brainy would be happy to read today, even if I had asked Jokey to smurf him a book."

The three younger smurfs felt their heart sink deep into their stomach.

"If you didn't ask him to get a book," Hefty said. "Then..."

"It's one of Jokey's surprises!" Gutsy shouted. The four smurfs started sprinting toward Brainy, who was un aware of the danger he could have been in. Upon getting closer, Papa spotted a wire in the binding of the book.

"Brainy!" the elder smurf shouted. The brainiac, too absorbed in his reading, didn't hear Papa as he turned the page.

"Brainy, NO!" Hefty, Grouchy, and Gutsy all screamed.

But it was too late. A loud explosion tore through the river scene, causing most of the smurfs to jump and yelp. Papa and the athletes skidded to a halt, mere feet from Brainy. When the smoke cleared, confetti from the book's pages were falling. They showered themselves upon Brainy's now charcoaled head. Most of the smurfs began to giggle, while some just started to laugh out loud. Gutsy, Hefty, Grouchy, and Papa were too shocked to move as they studied Brainy, not taking their eyes off of the smaller smurf for one second.

Brainy seemed to be frozen, a shocked look on his face. Every smurf was laughing at him. They were happy to see such pain and humiliation caused to him. His stomach had been scorched from the explosion, but he barely took notice of the pain. He was emotionally numb.

Papa finally got his wits about him and rushed to Brainy's side, along with Hefty, Grouchy, and Gutsy.

"Brainy!" the elder smurf knelt before his apprentice. Noticing the burn on his belly, Papa gently removed what was left of the book from Brainy's hands. The instant the three boys saw the physical wound, they all became furious. "Brainy," Papa said placing his hands on Brainy's shoulders and giving him a little shake. "Say something. Please."

"... My book..." Brainy's voice was soft as he bowed his head. "He... he made my book explode. It was my first edition... The first book I ever smurfed... The last copy I had... And I can't get that back..."

Gutsy knelt down and placed a hand on Brainy's back. He felt the smaller smurf instantly tense up and quiver. "It's okay lad. You can borrow my copy until you replace yours."

"But, this was my first book ever," Brainy's voice choked. Hefty and Grouchy knelt down so they could hear the smaller smurf. Hefty placed his hand on Brainy's, while Grouchy was doing his best to scope out Jokey. The instant he found that smurf...

"But think of all the new ones you can write," Papa said, trying to get Brainy to look at him. "I know you can smurf up more quotations quickly."

"But I can't," Brainy trembled. "I can't write anything anymore. All I do is scribble on paper, hoping more ideas come into my head. Jokey smurfed a prank on me, and destroyed something that was a part of me."

"Easy lad," Gutsy began to rub the brainiac's back.

Brainy's trembling soon grew worse, and no matter how much Gutsy whispered calmly into his ear, the smart smurf couldn't bring himself to believe him.

"Brainy, it'll be okay," Grouchy finally offered up.

That finally did it. Without warning, Brainy's head snapped up, tears running down his face.

"IT'LL BE OKAY? IT'LL NEVER BE OKAY!" all of the smurfs and smurflings jumped at the outburst. Everyone went quiet as Gutsy and Papa pulled their hands away in shock. "YOU ALL THINK IT'S EASY TO BE ME? OF COURSE! I ALL EVER DO IS SMRUF THE WRONG ADVICE, AND I CAN'T DO ANYTHING RIGHT! EVERYONE THINKS I'M THE BIGGEST IDIOT HERE, AND THEY ARE RIGHT! ALL I HAD LEFT WERE MY BOOKS, INCLUDING MY FAVORITE ONE, AND NOW THAT'S GONE TOO! WHAT MORE ARE ALL YOU SMURFS GOING TO TAKE AWAY FROM ME!"

Brainy leapt from his spot, sobbing harshly as he ran away toward the village. Papa had never seen one of his young smurfs so upset, and it angered him to think that someone had done this to Brainy. Grouchy clenched his hands into fists, anger flowing through him quickly. Hefty started looking for Jokey while Gutsy just stayed frozen in place, letting Brainy's outburst soak into his mind.

"JOKEY!" Papa yelled. All the smurfs looked toward the tree to see the prankster frozen with shock as well.

"Y-yes P-Papa?"

The three athletes cracked their knuckles and took a few steps toward the prankster before Papa stepped in between the two sides. "Easy you three!" he said sharply. "Fighting his not the answer."

"Look what you did to Brainy!" Hefty said irritated.

"I think we have more important matters right now," Papa said. "I will deal with Jokey. Hefty, Grouchy, Gutsy, go smurf out Brainy. Please try to calm him down as best as you can."

As much as Grouchy and Hefty wanted to beat Jokey into a pile of dust, Gutsy was the first of the three to speak.

"Aye Papa. Let's go lads! Now!"

The three hesitated one last time before running off into the woods.

"Where do you think he smurfed off to?" Grouchy asked.

"I'm not sure," Gutsy replied. "But I have a thought."

"What is it?" Hefty asked as he jumped over a fallen tree branch.

"I fear Brainy may be very hurt. You three saw the burn mark," Gutsy replied. "Just hope he doesn't do anything else to himself on purpose."

Grouchy and Hefty's chests clenched at the thought as the tore through the forest, following the smaller smurf's trail to the best of their abilities.


	2. Chapter 2

Brainy had finally smurfed back to his mushroom. The instant he unlocked the door he rushed him and crawled into a corner, crying his little blue heart out. The pain from his burn had finally set in, and his emotions were violently beating his heart up. It had finally happened. Every smurf had laughed at him, this time at his physical pain and suffering. After what seemed like an hour Brainy glanced up onto his desk when something caught his eyes. His letter opener glinted in the sunlight that poured through the window. Brainy was suddenly fixated on the object. It was almost like it was speaking to him.

"**Come my child,"** it called to Brainy. **"No smurf likes you, as you just witnessed. Bring your troubles to me, and I will make it all go away."**

Brainy hesitated before reaching up for the sharp object. He held it in his hands, studying it's shiny surface.

**"That's it,"** it seemed to whisper to him.** "Just end all of your problems. After all, if they don't miss you now, they won't miss you ever..."**

Brainy sobbed more before placing the letter opener across his wrist.

**"That's it..."** his mind cooed. **"It is for the best."**

Brainy closed his eyes as he said his final goodbyes to the world.

"STOP!"

As Brainy began to cut into his flesh, he felt himself tackled to the ground by someone larger than himself. His glasses flew off of his face as he heard the sound of footsteps. Brainy thankfully had only scratched his arm as the sharp object was ripped from his grasp by someone.

"What the smurf are you thinking Brainy?"

The smart smurf recognized the voice at once. "Hefty?"

As the larger smurf crawled off of him, Brainy began to feel around for his glasses. Finally finding them he placed them on his face to see Hefty, Grouchy, and Gutsy staring down at him. All three looked scared out of their wits at what they had just saw.

"What are you three doing here?" angry tears struck the small smurf as he pulled himself up, taking no notice to the blood trickling down his arm and dripping onto the floor.

"We ran after ya when ya ran off into the forest," Gutsy said sternly. "And it's a good thing we smurfed here just in time."

"What is going through your head Brainy?" Grouchy was still irritated about being unable to beat Jokey to a pulp.

"Who cares!" Brainy shouted back. "Every smurf would be so much better off if I didn't exist!"

"That's not true!" Hefty retorted.

"Oh really?" Brainy sobbed back. "Says the one who constantly throws me out of the village on a daily basis."

Guilt found it's way into Hefty's expression.

"And the smurf who told me he liked the quiet!" Brainy pointed to Grouchy, who instantly felt horrible.

"And what about me laddie?" Gutsy challenged. "What have I done to ya?"

"You help them!" Brainy blubbered. "And all the other smurfs think I'm stupid and that I'm worthless!"

"That's not true lad," Gutsy crossed his arms. "Let's face it, you can be annoyin' sometimes, but we don't hate ya."

"Gutsy's right," Grouchy huffed. "I was only joking around with you about you being quiet. Truth is, I was worried something was wrong. Turns out I was right."

"And I don't mean any harm Brainy," Hefty said crossly. "I just like messing with you. You haven't been hurt yet, have you? It's because I know where I'm tossing you, and make sure you don't get smurfed up bad."

Brainy trembled before them, trying to stop the tears from flowing down his face.

"Brainy," Gutsy said in a much softer voice. "If ya had told me you were upset, I would've stopped. We meant no harm to ya laddie."

"Gutsy's right," Hefty now calmed down a bit too. "We were just playing around."

"No one would like it if you died," Grouchy whispered as tears formed in his eyes.

Brainy hesitated before allowing his head to drop. "But why does everyone call me an idiot? Why do they not want me around?"

Hefty glanced at Grouchy, who sighed. "You can be annoying sometimes. There is nothing wrong with it, it's just who you are. I guess we all just pick on you, because you're the only smurf that can really get on our smurf."

"We do it because we care about ya lad, and just want to have a little fun with ya," Gutsy whispered. "But we didn't realize it hurt you so much."

"You should've spoken up," Hefty said. "We would've stopped if it was hurting you so badly."

Brainy couldn't believe what he was hearing. He glanced at the three smurfs again, his bottom lip quivering from his situation.

"Oh smurf..." Brainy quivered. He could feel more tears blurring his vision. "What the smurf was I thinking?"

Relief was seen in the three athlete's faces as the realization hit Brainy like a ton of bricks. The smart smurf watched as, for the first time, he noticed the affection they had for him; their little brother. Brainy's body began to hitch, as he fought back more tears.

"It's alright lad," Gutsy seemed to read his mind as he stepped forward. Taking off his plaid sash, he wrapped it around Brainy's injured arm, tying it tight to stop the blood flow. "Just let it all go now."

Brainy couldn't take it anymore. More sobs shot from his body. No longer able to support his own weight, he began to collapse as his sobbing overtook him. Gutsy moved quickly, catching him and holding Brainy as he helped the small smurf to the ground. Brainy clung to Gutsy for dear life, truly upset about what he was going to do to himself. Hefty and Grouchy, tears in their eyes as well, quickly surrounded Brainy in a large group hug.

"Let it go Brainy," Hefty chocked as tears flowed down his face as well. "Let it go."

Brainy wailed into Gutsy's chest, unable to stop himself. Depression he had been holding onto for so long had finally started to come out, and there was no going back. Grouchy gently held onto Brainy, sobbing quietly at the thought of almost loosing his little brother. Gutsy, tears now forming in his eyes, gently caressed Brainy's back, whispering, "It's alright now lad. We're right here. Shhhh... Just let it all out..." over and over again.

It was a half an hour before Brainy's sobs seemed to lessen. Tears still fell from his eyes as he looked up at Gutsy. The bold smurf gently smiled at him.

"Feel better now?"

Brainy sniffed and nodded. The slowly sat up, stiff from sitting there for so long. Grouchy reached for a hanker chief and blew his nose. Brainy wiped some of his tears with the back of Gutsy's sash.

"I'm sorry I smurfed so much trouble," Brainy hiccuped.

"And we're all sorry for makin' ya feel bad lad," Gutsy sniffled.

Hefty reached up onto a shelf and grabbed a first aid kit. "Let's see if we can't patch up your stomach a bit."

The three athletes worked gently to wrap up Brainy's stomach. Brainy sniffled, suddenly feeling a lot of the physical pain go away.

"Better?" Hefty asked.

Brainy nodded.

"Now, how about a smile, eh?" Grouchy showed an out of character grin. The three watched as Brainy's mouth twitched, but refused to form a grin.

"Don't make us make you laugh Brainy," Hefty playfully warned. "I don't think you'll like it if we do!"

Brainy grinned a little at Hefty's statement. This however, didn't please Gutsy enough.

"I don't hear ya laughin'!" the bold smurf reached over and began to gently tickle Brainy's neck. This instantly sent the smaller smurf into a giggle fit as he tried to swat the hands away.

"Heheheheheh! Alright alright I'm laughing! hehehehehahahahahahaha! Cut it out!"

The other three grinned as Gutsy stopped his attack. Brainy wiped the rest of his tears away.

"Can you do us a favor lad?"

"What?"

They glanced at each other before Grouchy spoke. "Don't you ever smurf this again. Okay?"

Brainy nodded, a true grin on his face. "Okay. I won't."

Gutsy smiled and looped him back into a hug. Hefty joined and soon, Grouchy couldn't control the urge to hug the smaller smurf any longer. They all sat on the floor of the house, happy to have each other safe and sound.


	3. Chapter 3

Papa raced back to the village. After giving a huge and stern lecture to all of his little smurfs, he was very concerned about Brainy. While it was true, sometimes Brainy really did get on everyone's nerves, Papa never once thought that Brainy would feel so horrible about himself.

_"How could I have missed this?"_ he thought as he ducked past a bush. _"How could I have misjudged my own apprentice so harshly."_

The elder smurf finally made it back to the village. He sprinted over toward Brainy's mushroom to discover the door wide open. Papa closed his eyes as he got closer, praying that everything was smurfy with his little smurf. Before he approached the doorway, he heard something that caused his eyes to snap open.

"Heheheheheh! Alright alright I'm laughing! Hehehehehahahahahahaha! Cut it out!"

Papa allowed himself a small smile before looking into the doorway. What he saw warmed his heart. There was Brainy, all smiles, surrounded by his strongest smurfs in a warm brotherly embraced. Papa smurf ducked back and simply listened to their conversation.

"I'm glad you're feeling better lad," Gutsy said.

"I do have one problem here," Brainy replied.

"What's that?" Hefty asked.

Papa Smurf leaned forward a bit to hear better.

"Just because you guys don't hate me doesn't mean the other smurfs don't either," Papa's heart sank at the question. "I mean, how do we know the others don't hate me."

There was silence in the house as one of the tough smurfs tried to think of something to tell the worrying smurf. Not wanting to ruin the moment, Papa tried to hold out, praying that someone could come up with an answer to calm Brainy's fears. Just as Papa started to step back into the doorframe, he heard Gutsy say, "Well lad, I think ya got through to a lot of 'em today. They shan't soon forget that outburst of emotion."

"That's another thing I'm worried about. What if they think I'm even worse because of that?"

"Then they will have to answer to us or Papa," Grouchy broke in. Papa heard some rustling and giggles from Brainy.

"Hehehehe! That tickles!"

"I know," Grouchy chuckled.

"Bottom line is Brainy, you shouldn't worry so much," Hefty said firmly. "I'm sure that the others don't hate you. I think they misunderstood you, just as we did."

"Maybe," Brainy sighed.

"Hey, it'll be okay," Gutsy said. "You don't know until it happens laddie."

"And no matter what happens, we'll be by your side," Grouchy said.

Papa smiled and decided to head back to his lab. The three athletes had done everything right, and Papa didn't think it was wise to disturb the time those four were spending together. _"This is what Brainy needs to recover from his horrible ordeal," _the elder smurf thought. _"Just some playful banter from his brothers. I've never seen them get along so well."_

It was a few hours before the smurfs returned from their river trip. Jokey went straight to his mushroom and shut himself in, not saying a word to anyone. Guilt could be seen on his face, for every other smurf shared the same emotion toward their fellow brainiac. Greedy quickly went home and started preparing dinner for everyone in the village while Smurfette was busy settling Baby in for a nap. Clumsy, one who had been most worried for Brainy, stumbled and tripped the entire way to the smart smurf's house. Nervous to see how his friend was faring, he cautiously knocked on the door, shuffling his feet before the door opened. Clumsy was surprised to see Grouchy answering, rather than Brainy.

"Grouchy?" Clumsy tilted his head a little bit. "Uh, can I talk to Brainy? Please? I just gotta know if he's okay."

Grouchy looked back into the house before turning toward the accident prone smurf. "Sure. Come on in."

Clumsy sighed with relief as he stepped into the house. Brainy and Gutsy were sitting on the bed while Hefty had pulled up a chair and was seated across the way from them. Grouchy leaned up against the wall as Clumsy walked toward Brainy.

"Uh, hiya Brainy," he said softly, still nervous with the three strong smurfs near him.

Brainy subconsciously shifted closer to Gutsy. "Hi Clumsy."

Awkward silence soon followed before Clumsy spoke. "Uh... I just wanted to see if you were alright. It worried me somethin' awful when I saw the book blow up. I've never felt so bad in my life."

The words touched Brainy's heart as he stared at his best friend. "Really?"

"Of course!" Clumsy exclaimed, pulling up a chair and sitting next to Hefty. "You're my best friend Brainy. I was so mad at Jokey, I sorta started to yell at him after ya left."

"You yelled at him?" Hefty cocked and eyebrow. "You're one of the most peaceful smurfs."

"A lot of the smurfs yelled at him," Clumsy explained. "I mean, we all feel guilty for making Brainy feel this way, but Jokey destroying that book sorta made us all snap," Brainy flinched and pressed his body toward Gutsy at the memory. "The other smurfs admit they were really mean to you, but we were never mean enough to destroy something that you loved so dearly."

Tears formed in Brainy's eyes again, threatening to fall. "Th-they really feel bad about it?"

"Yeah!" Clumsy explained. "We all do!"

Gutsy grinned a little and began to rub Brainy's back soothingly. "Ya see lad? They feel bad."

Brainy tried to grin, but the tears in his eyes fell instead. "How can I go out there after yelling at everyone?"

Clumsy shifted in his chair. "Gosh, I'll be with you Brainy! After all, your my best buddy! I could never let you down."

"Same goes for us," Grouchy chimed in. "You won't be alone."

Brainy wiped his eyes and smiled. "Thanks guys."

"Com'on," Grouchy said. "Let's go see what every smurf is up to."

Gutsy gently nudged Brainy off the bed before getting up himself. "Aye. Time we get movin' a little. Maybe we can find some smurfs to play smurfball."

"Actually," Brainy sighed. "I think I want to go see Papa for a while. Just to talk to him."

Hefty could see there was more still on Brainy's mind. Smiling, the strong smurf replied. "Alright. Want us to come along for a spell?"

Brainy shrugged. "If you want to."

Grouchy sighed before turning to Clumsy, also getting the subliminal messages. "Why don't you go start the game? We'll catch up."

"Uh, okay Grouchy!" Clumsy grinned before tripping over his own chair. Brainy suppressed a giggle at his friends misfortune. Hefty helped Clumsy up before leading the way out of the mushroom house. Brainy locked the door before turning around to look at the village. Fear griped his heart as he mentally forced his legs to move. Gutsy seemed to pick up on the brainiac's nervousness, as he never left Brainy's side, clearly the one who was most protective of the sensitive smurf. Not to far behind was Hefty. The strong-smurf was behind Brainy, acting as a bodyguard constantly on the lookout. Grouchy walked before Brainy, his irritated constantly growing. Not because of Brainy, but because of his increasingly desire to destroy Jokey for what he had done. At one point during the walk to Papa's, the irritable smurf excused himself from the group and went into his own mushroom house. After the sound of breaking wood was heard, he emerged with a throbbing fist, claiming he was feeling better as he continued to lead them to Papas.

Brainy's heart nearly stopped when he was outside the door. _"How am I going to explain this to Papa?"_ Tears formed in the corners of Brainy's eyes. This did not go un-noticed, as instantly Brainy felt Gutsy and Hefty's hands on his shoulders.

"It'll be alright lad," Gutsy said gently. "Just tell Papa what happened."

Brainy gulped as Grouchy knocked on the door. Within moments, Papa had opened the door, a mutual expression written on his face.

"Hello boys," he said with a small grin. "Would you like to come in?"

Grouchy, Hefty, and Gutsy glanced at Brainy, who nodded.

"Yes Papa."

The elder smurf stepped aside, allowing the four smurfs into his house. It was clean and neat, a rare sight for the constantly working father. It seemed he had spent the entire afternoon cleaning up and straightening his shelves. Brainy also noticed four chairs seated around the bed.

_"He knew we would be coming,"_ Brainy tried not to seem too scared as Papa ushered him onto the bed.

"Thanks for seein' us Papa," Gutsy sighed as he took one of the seats closest to Brainy.

"It's my pleasure," Papa said as he took a seat across from his troubled smurf.

"How'd you know we'd be coming over?" Hefty took a seat on the other side of Brainy.

"I had a hunch," upon offering Grouchy the remaining chair, he got a shake of the head as the grouch leaned up against the wall. Papa noticed Grouchy's hand and mentally sighed.

"I see you have your stomach bandaged up Brainy," the elder smurf spoke. "But, why do you have Gutsy's sash around your arm?"

Guilt found it's way to Brainy's face, as more tears started to form. Seeing the brainiac's discomfort, Papa spoke gently as he reached out for Brainy's hand. "Brainy. Look at your Papa."

Brainy jammed his eyes shut, tears falling down his face. He opened them and forced himself to stare into Papa's loving eyes.

"What happened to your arm, Brainy?"

Brainy felt stuck in Papa's gaze, knowing fully well that he couldn't lie to him. He pulled from Papa's grip and undid the makeshift bandage to reveal the cut, long and red from the dried blood. Papa looked at Brainy with pain in his eyes before placing a hand gently over it.

"Brainy, did you do this to yourself?" Papa remained calm, though inside he was breaking into pieces.

The smart smurf drew a jagged breath as more tears fell from his face. "Y-yes Papa..."

Papa closed his eyes for a brief moment before replacing removing the sash from the wound. Now stained with blood, he set it aside and turned back to Brainy.

"I'm not mad at you Brainy," Papa started. "And I don't intend on punishing you for this. But you need to be honest with me now."

Brainy looked up at Papa's face. "I-I'm not in trouble?"

"No Brainy," a sad grin formed on Papa's face. "But you need to tell me what you are feeling right now."

Brainy drew more jagged breaths, feeling his anxiety rise above normal. "I feel lost Papa."

Gutsy rose from his seat and sat on the bed with Brainy, looping him into a one-armed hug.

"Can you elaborate?" Papa asked gently.

Brainy looked straight at Papa. "I feel like no matter what I do, it's not good enough for anyone. All I try to do is help the other smurfs, and I get picked on and hurt because of it. I'm sorry if I am a pain in the smurf sometimes, but I am honestly only trying to help. I guess a month ago, I started to really feel bad. I just got depressed, lost interest in everything I loved. I couldn't eat, sleep, or read right," Brainy started speaking steadier, as the truth finally came out to Papa. "When Jokey smurfed that prank on me, I just lost it. I ran back to my house, where I thought that no smurf really cared about me. And I admit it, I tried to kill myself," Gutsy cringed at the idea before Papa nodded for Brainy to continue. "Hefty, Gutsy, and Grouchy stopped me before I could, but I managed to scratch up my arm. After they talked me through, and apologized for their own versions of teasing me, I realized that I was about to make a huge mistake. I still feel horrible though; no amount of tickling can fix it right now. It confuses me, and I'm scared."

Papa looked deep into Brainy's eyes. "What is frightening you my little smurf?"

More tears poured down Brainy's face before he blurted out, "I'm scared of the other smurfs hurting me more!"

The eldest and his three athletes jumped at the outburst as Brainy burst into more tears. Gutsy wrapped both his arms around the smart smurf and repositioned him so he was crying on the scotsman's chest. Hefty and Grouchy soon followed suit, surrounding Brainy in a warm hug. As soon as Papa processed the explanation, he rose from his seat. The three athletes slowly pulled away from Brainy as Papa walked up to him.

"Brainy," the elder smurf began. "You shouldn't be afraid to live here in this village. None of the other smurfs will hurt you again, and if they do you can always tell me. I'm sorry I didn't see the signs sooner, and it hurts me to think one of my little smurfs wanted to kill himself," tears fell down Papa's face and disappeared into his beard. "And I'm very proud of you for realizing that it wasn't the smurfiest solution to the problem. You need to know that no matter what happens, you will always have me here you can talk to. And I'm sure that Hefty, Gutsy, and Grouchy won't let anysmurf hurt you anymore."

Brainy wiped his eyes away only to have more tears fall. "Y-your still not m-mad at me?"

Papa smiled as more tears fell. "Of course not my little smurf. I'm very proud of you for being brave enough to tell me all of this. And I will do everything I can to make things right again. I promise."

Brainy began sobbing softly again as Papa embraced him. Hefty and Gutsy soon joined, finally Grouchy couldn't resist the moment as he too held the smart smurf, still wondering when he would be able to make Jokey fully pay for what he had done to his little brother.


	4. Chapter 4

It had been a few days since Brainy's incident. Nobody had seen any sign of Jokey, causing some tension in the brainiac. Life in the village had begun to continue for every smurf, though Brainy was still quiet. The embarrassment he had felt had worn off, though he still refused to offer advice, out of slight fear of being tormented and bullied. Gutsy, Hefty, and Grouchy always had an eye on Brainy, making sure nobody gave him anymore trouble. Their mere presence made it so Brainy was easily invited in others activities. Sweepy and Handy, who were also worried for Brainy, were part of a few smurfs who didn't need the presence of the strong smurfs to include the brainiac in any of their projects.

Brainy sat on the outskirts of the village, watching the afternoon clouds go by. He took come comfort in watching the fluffy puffs pass peacefully. It wasn't long, however, before the empty feeling of loneliness crept into his chest. He tried to ignore it, as he heard footsteps coming toward him. Brainy closed his eyes briefly before turning his head to to see Sweepy, Gutsy, and Hefty approaching him.

" 'Ello mate!" Sweepy was clean, having bathed off the day's grim. "What are you doing out 'ere?"

"Watching the clouds," Brainy tried to make his voice sound calm, with very little luck. The three staring at him caught on quickly.

"What's on your mind lad?" Gutsy too a seat next to the smaller smurf.

Brainy sighed, knowing all to well he couldn't hide from them. "I'm just thinking about everything."

Hefty frowned as he and Sweepy also too a seat next to Brainy.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Sweepy asked.

Brainy shrugged. "I don't know what good it'll do."

"Will make you feel better," Hefty replied. "And maybe we can help you figure some things out."

Brainy sighed and laid down in the grass, groaning in exasperation.

Weepy set his broom, also clean for the day, on the ground before placing a hand on Brainy's shoulder.

"Com' on mate," he spoke calmly as Brainy put his hands behind his head. "You can tell us anything."

Brainy closed his eyes ans he finally spoke. "I haven't seen Jokey in some time. I'm constantly looking around from him, expecting him to jump out from behind something. I believe what I'm experiencing is called hyper-vigilance, a common side affect of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD."

Sweepy blinked as he tried to process the comment.

"Are you sure about this lad?" Gutsy asked. "PTSD is serious."

"Alright I'll bite," Hefty interrupted. "What's PTSD?"

"It's like an illness, but of the mind," Sweepy replied.

"Basically," Brainy interrupted. "Someone with PTSD becomes constantly stressed, through sadness, fear, or anger, after a traumatic event."

The three smurfs stared at Brainy, not knowing he had such knowledge.

"Didn't know that," Hefty replied after a few moments. "That sounds serious."

"Do you know if you have it mate?"

Brainy closed his eyes again. "I'm not sure. It's hard to diagnose by yourself. Someone has to observe the symptoms and make a decision on whether it is or isn't PTSD."

Gutsy sighed and leaned back in the grass. "Lad, from what I've see, you getting the first few symptoms of the disorder. But I think it's in the beginning stages, meaning it hasn't fully developed yet. We caught it in time. Right now you are recovering from a recent trauma," Gutsy glanced at Brainy's belly and arm, both now fully healed. "And that's what's making you scared."

Brainy subconsciously shifted his hand to his stomach, as if guarding it from more pain. Sweepy took notice and placed his own hand on top of Brainy's.

"I'm glad you told us mate," he said gently.

"Me too," Hefty replied.

"Same here, laddie."

Brainy grinned a little. "Thanks for listening."

The three smurfs smiled. "No problem," they said in unison.

Brainy's smile got a bit bigger as they glanced at each other with amused expressions.

"You think it's funny huh?" Hefty teased. Sweepy and Gutsy caught on quickly and grinned. Brainy's grin vanished as he also caught on to Hefty's playful tone.

"Oh no you don't!" Brainy jumped up as fast as he could, only to be pulled back down by Gutsy. It didn't take long before Hefty was holding his legs still, removing his shoes in the process. Gutsy held Brainy's hands above his head, grinning down at him.

"This is not fair!" Brainy began to grin at the play time.

"Yes it is mate," Sweepy smiled.

"What'cha guys doing?"

The four smurfs turned to see Grouchy and Handy coming closer to them.

"Just havin' some fun with Brainy," Gutsy grinned as Brainy tried to wiggle loose.

"Care to join us?" Sweepy offered, trying to keep from chuckling.

Handy couldn't help but giggle as he knelt down beside Sweepy. Grouchy crossed his arms, but a grin played on his lips. Brainy looked up at the grouch, a nervous grin on his face.

"Help?"

Grouchy sighed before kneeling on Briany's other side, causing the brainiac's eyes to go wide. "Grouchy!"

"You didn't specify who I help."

Brainy tried to break free from his entrapment, but it was too late. Tickling from all five smurfs soon dissolved Brainy into a hysterical fit of laughter. Brainy cackled like a madman, and it wasn't long before his face turned red.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA! COME ON GUYS! AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I-I-I CAN'T TAKE IT! HEHEHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Brainy squealed as Grouchy began to tickle his navel.

"I found a sweet spot!" irritability had long since vanished from him. Sweepy and Handy switched gears and assisted in tickling around Brainy's belly button, giggling the entire time. Hefty was busy with Brainy's feet, tickling the arches and toes at the same time. Gutsy would switch back and forth between the neck and the arm pits, while Sweepy went back to tickling the ribcage, much like a piano. It took five minutes before they decided Brainy had had enough torture, and one by one they released him. The instant his "bonds" were removed, the brainiac curled into a ball, still giggling hysterically, causing the other smurfs to chuckle. Once Brainy calmed down, he sat up and looked at them.

"Smurfit all!" he tried to sound angry, but his grin gave him away. "You guys know how ticklish I am!"

"We know lad," Gutsy briefly tickled Brainy's sides, causing the smaller smurf to squeal. "Tis why we do it."

Brainy tried to retort, but laughter came out instead. The other five began to laugh as well, having enjoyed the time they were spending together.

"It's almost sunset," Handy finally spoke up from his giggling. "Maybe we should head back to the village?"

Brainy thought for a second before a grin played on his face. "Hold on a second."

The other five glanced at him, with slightly concerned expressions.

"What's wrong?" Grouchy finally spoke.

Brainy grinned. "Nothing's wrong."

"Then why wait to head on back?" Handy asked.

"I want to show you smurfs something," Brainy jumped up to his feet and started in toward the forest. The others hesitated before getting up themselves and following the brainiac into the forest.

It was a good five minutes before they reached Brainy's destination. A large tree, taller than most of the others, stood proud in the forest. Brainy began to climb up, leaving five curious smurfs down below. When he noticed nobody was following him, he giggled.

"You've got to climb in order to see it!"

The other five also started scaling the large tree, Handy sticking close to Hefty incase he fell (Handy wasn't very strong, or used to climbing things without ladders). After some time, Brainy finally chose a branch and walked across it to the center, taking a seat facing west. Gutsy, bold as ever, swung himself until he was by Brainy's side, with Sweepy jumping next to him. The other three, Grouchy next to Brainy, climbed the easy way and took a seat next to the brainiac. What they saw dazzled all of them.

The sun had just started to sink behind the mountains in the distance, turing the sky brilliant colors of gold and purple. A few birds flew off into the distance, setting the perfect mood for peace and tranquility.

"Brainy, it's beautiful!" Handy exclaimed.

"It's like I can smurf the whole world from here," Hefty replied.

"How did you find this lad?"

Brainy grinned. "I was having a bad day, and I sorta took off into the forest. I found the tree and decided to climb up, trying to escape Vanity for a while. I stayed up there for hours, just looking at the view. I come here often when I'm upset. It's just something that gives me some peace of mind."

The five glanced over at their younger brother, grins on their faces. It wasn't long before The all had their arms around each other, gazing at the sun as it disappeared behind the mountains. As the content sigh escaped his lips, Gutsy looked over before giving the brainiac's side a gentle squeeze. Brainy giggled before resting his head on Grouchy's shoulder. Grouchy, not wanting to upset the moment, let Brainy do so for a very long time. And for a moment, Brainy wasn't worried about Jokey, or wasn't feeling left out of life. For one moment Brainy Smurf felt completely at ease, surrounded by the warmth of his brothers as the last rays of the sun fell behind the mountain.


End file.
